Last night, the Prairie Wetlands Learning Center filled with neighbors, friends, and partners gathered to celebrate the 2026 West Central Unsung Caretakers, six Fergus Falls-area honorees recognized for caring for our natural places and the communities around them.
Naomi Baucom, US Fish & Wildlife Service Director for the Prairie Wetlands, opened the evening with a warm welcome. Victoria Rose, a current artist in Upstream’s Grassroots Journalism & Creative Writer Residency Program, followed with an original poem she wrote and read about ancestry and the wisdom we carry forward. Alex Blondeau of Windflower Natives, a past Unsung Caretaker who grows native prairie plants, then shared how much his work has grown and evolved since his award.
The rest of the evening was spent listening to inspiring stories from the honorees. On a panel, they shared the stories behind their work: how they show up for their community and steward our natural places, often quietly and as a steady part of their everyday life.
Meet the honorees:
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Prairie Science Class Partnership brings 200 fourth and fifth graders into the prairie and wetlands for hands-on learning, through a partnership with Fergus Falls Public Schools and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Four teachers guide students as they follow the seasons and fill field journals, fostering a lifelong love of the outdoors. Prairie Science Teacher Mona Davis spoke for the partnership.
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Crystal Frank, founder of WholeHeart Collective, has built a gathering space with knitting and sewing circles, yoga and art classes, free diapers, and food drives, where people from every background belong.
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Cedar Walters champions organic composting across Otter Tail County and also serves on multiple boards, leads Girl Scouts, and organizes clothing swaps and meal trains. Cedar has inspired neighbors to waste less by the way she and her family lives out their values.
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Two Shirt Army is a volunteer crew that shows up when a neighbor needs a hand, helping with moves, yard cleanups, and service projects, especially in a difficult season. Founder, Jesse Thorstad and Organizer, Eliza Osterman Roberts shared about the origins of this grassroots initiative and how it’s evolved to serve the needs of their local community, which now includes the 5 2 Meal Bank Food Pantry servicing folks experiencing food insecurity – funded entirely by individual donors!
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Fergus Falls Fish & Game Club is one of Minnesota’s oldest active sports clubs. Mick Siems shared how, for more than 20 years, the club has partnered with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the city of Fergus Falls to help bring the Prairie Wetlands Learning Center to life, the conservation education facility where we gathered last night. The club believes hunting and fishing last when we teach young people to love the outdoors.
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Wayne Hurley couldn’t join us, but the impact is easy to see around town. After years of advocating for safer biking and walking in Fergus Falls, Wayne’s vision turned a retired tennis court into a bicycle playground where kids learn to ride.
Guests were gifted a native plant to take home from Windflower Natives and a native plant mixed seed packet of bee balm, milkweed, purple coneflower, blazing star, and Joe-Pye weed, collected by Deb Zachmann and packed with Naomi RaMona Schliesman.
Special thanks to the Prairie Wetlands Learning Center for hosting us, to Bored Foodie for feeding us, to our volunteers, and to every guest who came out to help us celebrate these incredible Unsung Caretakers!